//------------------------------// // Going Back // Story: Cosmic Lotus // by Goldfur //------------------------------// Techbird Sunbeak was one happy crystal griffon. Progress on researching her Question had been both amazing and frustrating. On the one claw, she now had access to a vast quantity of knowledge heretofore unknown. On the other though, she was swamped with too much information to easily process in spite of all the assistance from Galena and the changeling network. Now that they had gotten a clue from the Federation research team, she was able to focus her efforts on a more specific era and area. The network quickly accessed everything that was known about Celtic runes and one thing became immediately apparent – the message in a bottle that she had been given years ago by the Starswirl apparition was written in those self-same runes. Translating it became the top priority. ‘The tree did not last as long as Nimue thought.’ Techbird stared at the words but still did not comprehend their meaning. She sighed. “I should have suspected that the old mage would be obscure,” she murmured irritably. More research was called for, but perhaps with the assistance of a Terran expert in such things. As remarkable as the changeling gestalt was, it struggled with so much unfamiliar data. While it might have been able to puzzle out the significance of the message eventually, the griffoness decided that a scholar with a broad knowledge of the subjects she was researching could speed things up, and so she put out the call for assistance. Wandering Path forwarded her request to the Federation liaison who promised to find Techbird the required help. Meanwhile, he had gotten a different request from the engineers on his ship to join the Pegasus in its investigation of the wormhole. Naturally, this was spearheaded by Radiance Point. “You do realize what this means, don’t you, Captain?” Point had asked as soon as he had heard about the runes. “Why don’t you tell me,” Wandering had replied in a tone humoring the excited unicorn. “It means that it’s a product of thaumaturgy which is not within the Federation’s capabilities. That means that it had been waiting all this time for someone like us to find and use it again.” Wandering arched an eyebrow. “Again?” “Of course, again. All these similarities between Equus and Terra imply that many things, and perhaps many people once travelled from this side of the wormhole to the other. However, although knowledge of its use has been lost to the passage of time, it has been left in place for us to discover it again eventually. I believe that we were meant to find it when we were ready to deal with it and what lay on the other side. It’s our route between Equus and the rest of the universe!” “And so…?” “And so we need to be there to work out how to use our gateway to the stars. We need to join the Federation team and figure out how to use it safely.” “You want us to fly through that thing once more?” Wandering asked a little bit incredulously. “You know better than anyone what it did to us last time.” The unicorn nodded and waved a hoof dismissively. “Our problem was partly due to the lack of maneuvering capability, but mostly due to the damaged sail that was throwing us off course. I predict that if we approach the gateway in a properly controlled fashion, our passage through it would be safe and relatively smooth. But that’s why we need to be there; Federation scientists know nothing about the portal.” “While you are drawn to it like a moth to a flame,” Wandering said with a chuckle. “Alright – I think we can indulge you there. Techbird wants to work planet-side with Galena to follow up on some strong leads for her research while Equian representatives are having talks with the Federation Council, which leaves most of us doing nothing but enjoying an extended shore leave. I think it’s time for the Cosmic Lotus to get back to work.” Helen Baines shrieked as shi was chased down the beach by the mighty predator. If it was not for the giggles and taunts that shi threw over hir shoulder as shi teased the griffon pursuing hir, the other beachgoers may have been a lot more concerned about the catbird chasing his prey. Ortzi Goldbeak was happier than at any other time in his life. In spite of their wildly different species, his betrothed was everything that he dreamed of in a mate – beautiful, strong, smart, and of a similar personality. They enjoyed doing everything together, and the past week of shore leave had been heaven. Shi had the strength of will and of body to deal with having a griffon for a mate, and shi understood how to be playful with one, hence the chase, the successful conclusion of which would be a reward for both of them. A gliding tackle finally caught his quarry despite hir best attempts at dodging him, and they rolled together on the sand. They came to a stop with hir wrapped firmly in his forelegs, hir smiling face inches from his own. “You caught me, so what are you going to do about it?” shi asked coyly. “Now I’m going to eat you!” Ortzi replied, lowering his wicked beak to hir neck and starting to nibble on her neck. Helen giggled and squirmed. “Ortzi! Everyone on the beach is watching us.” “Tell them I’m not sharing,” he replied. The rabbit morph laughed and gave him a kiss before softly digging hir fingers into his sides. The griffon squawked and started squirming but Helen persisted. Eventually, he gave up and released the bunny girl, rolling away from hir grasp. “I’m sorry that you ever found out that I’m ticklish,” he grumbled. “You’re merciless!” “A mate of a griffon must use all hir wiles,” shi replied smugly. Ortzi was about to retort when a sound came out of the pouch that he was wearing. Grumbling about the interruption, he fished out his comm from the pouch. “Ortzi here.” … “Understood, Captain. What about Helen, sir?” … His expression brightened. “Yes, sir! Ortzi out.” “What’s going on?” Helen asked. “I’ve been recalled to the Cosmic Lotus.” “Oh. I suppose it was inevitable though. We’ve had a good run but we knew it couldn’t last. What did Captain Path say about me?” Ortzi grinned. “We’re going to join the Pegasus out at the wormhole, so you’re coming with me when we leave tomorrow.” Helen cheered up when shi heard that, but then hir smile slipped a little. “You know that eventually we will be parted. Your ship will head off wherever, while I will have to resume my duties with Star Fleet.” The griffon sighed and drew the rabbit morph closer to hug hir. “I’ve been thinking about that. I know that you can’t simply leave Star Fleet, but I’m a civilian. Now that the Lotus has reached its goal and Prince Destined can teleport us back to Equus, the crew have the option of leaving the ship. So I was wondering if I could live with you instead?” Helen could not help but smile with joy. “You would do that? You would be leaving behind your family and your world for me. Life as the mate of a starship crewperson isn’t always easy.” “Living without you would be even harder. I want to look into what I need to do to be part of the Pegasus’ crew so that I can be with you.” Helen hugged the griffon fiercely. “There are plenty of precedents, Admiral Kline’s family not the least of them. We can do this – I know it!” Ortzi wrapped a wing around hir. “You have conquered me, my warrior bunny. I am yours forever.” Cosmic Lotus departed the next day for the return journey to the Chakastra system. The majority of the crew chose to remain with the ship, most stating that they considered their mission incomplete as yet. Some homesick individuals and a few whose family needed them for some reason or another had taken the offer of a lift back to Equus, although several indicated that they would like to resume duties at a later date if possible. Much to Techbird and Galena’s dismay, the majority of the changelings also travelled with the ship as they were necessary to the running of the vessel, leaving only a few of them available to work with the griffon and princess on Earth. Wandering realized that this would slow down their research, but the Cosmic Lotus had to be of paramount importance. A few tweaks by the engineers under Radiance Point’s guidance had improved the efficiency of the hybrid set-up of the warp drive, and the starship managed to shave a day off the journey back. They made their way to directly rendezvous with the Pegasus, finding it accompanying a couple of research vessels. These were all parked at a cautious distance from the six moonlets that defined the portal. Wandering and the crew took some time to have a close look at the satellites, curious about their nature. When they had been ejected from the wormhole, they had not been in any condition to make observations of the objects, nor get very good images of them. Now though, they could see that they were identical to those found at the other end of the hole through space. Wandering, Starry, and two passengers teleported aboard the Pegasus at the location that had been designated for such for all future visits. Happy to comply with this protocol and keep the Security Officer satisfied, the alicorns willingly complied, and they knew exactly where to go from that point. Helen parted ways with the others to report for duty while the remaining three went to join Admiral Kline and several other staff in one of the ship’s meetings rooms. “Welcome back aboard, Captain Path and Lieutenant Commander Path,” Boyce greeted them, setting the tone for the meeting. “Thank you, Admiral Kline,” Wandering replied. “I gather that you have made some progress in your studies of the wormhole?” Boyce smiled. “You could say that, or you could also say that we have discovered how little we understand the nature of this particular one.” “I thought the Federation was familiar with wormholes?” “Define ‘familiar’. We are aware of naturally occurring ones which are so unstable that they very quickly collapse, and we know of the ones that can accidentally form due to an improperly created warp field. Those are also unstable, and any ship caught in one rarely survives. Then there is yours. It’s sitting there, stable as a rock, and probably has been since it was created. And there’s no doubt among any of the experts that it’s artificial.” “That was our thought also. So I’m guessing that you realize that you need experts on thaumaturgy to assist your studies?” The human nodded, a wry grimace on his face. “Got it in one. Let me introduce you to the scientist in charge of studying the wormhole.” He gestured to the skunktaur seated to his right. “This is Doctor Zara Harding of the Chakonan Institute of Science. The doctor is one of the Federation’s leading experts in astrophysics.” The skunktaur nodded and said, “Thank you for the introduction, Admiral, and with all due respect to you, Captain Path, I believe that it’s your mate whose skills we are most in need of right now.” Starry grinned. “That’s my specialty too, Doctor Harding, and I’m eager to find out what you have learned already, and in return help out with understanding the thaumaturgical aspects of the phenomenon.” “I confess to having been skeptical as to the existence of thaumophysics, but I am not so boneheaded as to deny the existence of what is right in front of my eyes. I trust that you will tolerate my ignorance of such matters?” “We’re both here to learn, Doctor. There is nothing to be ashamed of for not knowing something, only for refusing to accept the truth. My eyes were no less opened when we exited our tiny pocket of reality and burst upon this enormous universe of ours.” “Indeed. And on that note, I gather that this is the expert that we requested?” Harding asked as he looked at the human that had accompanied Wandering and Starry. Starry replied as she turned to face the woman by her side. “Yes. Let me introduce Bronwyn Jones, an expert in Celtic runes and folklore.” The skunktaur said, “Thank you for coming, Ms. Jones. This is a unique situation that requires your particular talents.” Bronwyn gave the skunktaur a tight smile and replied with a Welsh accent, “That’s what brought me out here, Doctor Harding. I believe that your project may shed some light on my own field of research, especially with these magic-using beings lending credence to certain myths and legends.” “It’s an exciting time for science of many kinds, isn’t it? Let me introduce you and Starry to the rest of the team.” The skunktaur named and gave the specialties of each of the others at the table. After that, Boyce and Wandering excused themselves from the meeting as the team immediately began discussing their studies of the gateway so far. As they left the room, Boyce offered refreshments to the visiting captain. “Some of that delicious coffee of yours would be nice, Boyce.” “I was thinking the same thing,” Boyce replied as they headed for his stateroom. “How was your trip from Earth?” “It went excellently. Radiance Point is smug beyond belief at his improvements upon the warp drive that he has already made. I think he has a brand new starship already half-built in his head.” Boyce chuckled as they entered the translift and the doors closed behind them. “I’ve met people like him before. I’ve always found that it’s good to give them a very long leash and let them get on with their ideas. Remarkable things get achieved that way.” “Preaching to the choir, my friend. He’s the heart and soul of Engineering, even though Commander Bluequill is technically his superior.” “I gather Bluequill’s role tends more to restraining Point’s extravagances?” “You got that right. Once in a while, Radiance needs to be reined in by a cooler head.” They exited the translift and made their way to Boyce’s stateroom. The human made some coffee for his guest and himself, and they settled down comfortably to chat. So – what’s the news?” Boyce asked. Wandering took a sip of his coffee before replying. “Diplomatic bureaucracy still reigns, but our ambassadors and yours are slowly working on some agreements. I’ve been told that a visit to Equus is likely in the near future to have some first-hoof experience with what it’s like there, and have talks with some more of the world’s leaders.” “Prince Destined Path would teleport them there?” “Yes, although there’s some hope that a starship could take a large delegation to Equus instead.” “How? We don’t know where exactly Equus is yet. Even your best estimates have a huge error factor.” “Through the wormhole, of course.” Boyce’s eyes widened and his eyebrows raised. “But we have barely started research on how it works!” Wandering gave him a wry grin. “Starry pointed out that you don’t have to understand it to use it. Judging from our own experience, she reckons that it’s activated with a mana charge, and a little practical experimentation would determine how large a ship we could safely pass through it.” “So you could at least take the Cosmic Lotus back home under warp and arrive in only a few days.” “Yes, but if it could be made large enough, it could accommodate a bigger Federation ship too – maybe even the Pegasus.” The Admiral’s gaze focused into the distance as that possibility caught his imagination. “I would dearly love to visit Equus.” “And I’d love to show you around my homeworld. I’d like you to enjoy the hospitality of my family as much as we enjoyed yours.” “I accept your invitation, and I hope I get the chance to take you up on it.” Boyce took a thoughtful swig of his brew before continuing. “Aside from wishful thinking, what else is happening?” “I have a crew member who wants to join your ship.” Boyce steepled his fingers and grinned. “Let me guess – it’s the griffon boyfriend of Lieutenant Baines – I forget his name.” “Ortzi Goldbeak, and they’re serious about this.” “I’m certain that they are, but it’s not as simple as that. While I can authorize a temporary arrangement, a long-term assignment involves a certain degree of protocol to be observed. Like Forestwalker did, Ortzi would have to undergo Star Fleet training even in a civilian capacity. That would take months during which the two would be separated. On top of that, there’s the fact that Equus is not yet officially allied with nor part of the Stellar Federation.” Wandering sighed. “Bureaucracy again. One reason why I prefer to be a starship captain and away from that sort of thing.” “Is that why you’re not a prince like your brother?” The alicorn nodded. “I refused to be coronated. Equestria has enough rulers, and the current triarchy is both stable and well-liked.” “Your nation’s government is most unusual. I’ve never heard of such a system before.” “While having three heads of state is only a century and a half old, two worked for a lot longer previously. With the right ponies in power, the population is happy and satisfied.” “Sounds like a utopia,” Boyce said skeptically before taking a swig of his coffee. Wandering laughed. “Nothing is perfect, Boyce. We’ve had our share of troubles over the centuries, but House Path has worked hard to help make things better since its inception. We stand at a new crossroads now though with the Stellar Federation opening relationships with Equus, so hopefully, things won’t get too crazy.” Starry gave Wandering an update on their progress that evening. Bronwyn had been of enormous help in deciphering the runes engraved upon the moonlets, but even she was puzzled by what it all meant. “I’m going to call in Mama Twilight,” Starry said. “She has studied a lot of the old style magic, and she might be able to cast some light on the subject.” “So you reckon that it’s going to take experts in two fields of study to figure out what those runes do?” “Three, actually. One to interpret, one to tell what it’s supposed to do, and one to figure out how it does it.” “Sounds like you have your work cut out for you.” “Yes, but I was right about one thing earlier.” Wandering arched an eyebrow. “Oh? What’s that?” “We don’t need to understand it to use it. I’m confident that I’ve already identified the gross controls. It’s pretty much automatic, but if my suspicions are correct, one day we may be able to do a lot more than going from here to the other gateway.” “What do you mean?” Starry smiled excitedly. “What would you think about a gateway to the stars? Any star! It would make warp drive virtually obsolete.” “What did your fellow researchers think of that idea?” “Some degree of skepticism, but it’s early days yet.” “Takes some fun out of exploring, doesn’t it?” Starry poked her mate with a hoof. “Since when is the exciting stuff in the travel? It’s the destination that’s the goal of people like us. We want to explore worlds, not the void between star systems.” Wandering grinned. “I was beginning to wonder if you were losing sight of that. I have already begun considering what goal to pursue when this mission winds up.” “But first we need to deal with the Swarm,” Starry reminded him. The stallion sighed. “Yes, we do. But damned if I can think of how just yet.” Twilight was in scholarly heaven. She had seen the runes that had been in the video received back on Equus, but it had been far from comprehensive, and the resolution was dreadfully inadequate. Here aboard the Pegasus though, she had access to so much equipment and a good platform from which to observe. In just two days, she already had enough material to write a book on the subject of rune-magic-controlled stable wormholes. Her fellow researchers were infected with Twilight’s excitement. “Have you figured out that many of its secrets already?” Doctor Harding asked. “What? Oh, no. I mean we have years of study ahead of us. Isn’t it wonderful?” she asked. Harding facepalmed. “Starry warned me that you were a nerd. I thought she was exaggerating. ‘Nobody could be that excited about so much grueling research,’ I said.” Twilight shrugged apologetically. “Sorry, but as the Alicorn of Magic, I live for this kind of thing. Rune magic hasn’t been used on Equus since the time of Starswirl the Bearded, but it’s evident that it’s a powerful and durable form of magic, and we need to recover this lost art and record it for posterity.” “Have you at least discovered how to control it?” “Oh, that? Sure. Here are my notes on it.” Twilight telekinetically passed a sheet of notepaper to the skunktaur. Harding glanced at the almost illegible scrawls upon the paper and sighed. “One of the most powerful and intelligent beings in existence, and she can’t write to save her life,” hy muttered to hymself. “Didn’t we provide you with one of our PADDs?” “Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer quill and paper.” Twilight then turned her attention back to the work that so fascinated her. Harding left to find Starry. Perhaps she could interpret her herd-mother’s notes. “We’re going home!” Caught by surprise by Starry’s sudden entrance, Wandering’s mental gears spun wildly for a moment before they re-engaged. “What are you talking about, Starry?” “Mama Twilight has identified the basic control mechanism. It’s basically foolproof. Just aim a beam of magic at the moonlet marked with the rune of Motion and that activates the gateway. Then you feed it with raw mana to open it up – the more mana, the bigger it opens.” “How did we activate it coming from Equus?” “Simple! Our navigation scans were sufficient to activate it and the misfired light bomb released its load of mana to supply the required energy. If it had been fed another burst or two, we might have slipped through without all the drama that we had.” “Nice to know that in hindsight. So, now that we know how to use the portal, you want to go home?” “Actually, the Federation wanted to send its diplomatic team as soon as possible, so now that we’re sure that we can control it, even if we don’t yet understand how it works, they have dispatched a team to Chakastra already. They’ll be here in less than two days, I’m told. Such a fast ship! Anyway, the Cosmic Lotus will provide the mana to open up the portal big enough for us, the diplomatic envoy, and the Pegasus to go through. Then we head home. Forty-two light-years are nothing compared to the round trip that we just did between here and Earth.” “Why is a huge warship like the Pegasus coming along?” “Military escort, I suppose. Or stallions showing off who has the biggest dick. I don’t know – I’m not a diplomat.” Wandering grimaced. “I had better tell Boyce to remind the diplomats that it took just a few alicorns to accelerate a starship to nearly the speed of light. Think what that power could do to even a ship as big as the Pegasus.” Starry giggled. “The Federation wants an ally that can fight an enemy that it hasn’t been able to turn back by itself, so it had better accept the fact that it isn’t the big fish in the pond anymore.” With only passive scans running so as not to prematurely activate the portal, the Cosmic Lotus cautiously approached the six moonlets and then came to a halt at a predetermined distance. Wandering nodded to Playbitz. “Send the activation pulse.” The pegasus executed the order, and moments later the runes on the target moonlet lit up, quickly followed by the two moonlets nearest to the first, then the next two, and then the final one. Gravitic attraction has begun, Captain,” Playbitz reported. “Ready mana burst,” Wandering spoke into the comm. “Mana burst ready, Captain,” Radiance Point’s voice came back. “Fire mana burst.” The screen showed a huge ball of raw mana hurtling toward its target. As it was about to pass between the six moonlets, it released its full energy into the array. Each node pulsed with light and long, thick streams of energy linked them just as they had done in their first encounter. The tunnel effect rapidly grew as the moonlets moved further apart, but this time far larger than it had when the Cosmic Lotus had first passed through. The mana burst had hopefully been calibrated correctly to accommodate the huge mass and size of the Pegasus, and they watched the wormhole grow until its maw was gigantic. When it finally stopped growing, Playbitz announced, “Portal within 2% of the projected size and well within the desired safety margin. We can proceed, Captain.” “Engage impulse power. Take us through, Mister Playbitz.” “Aye, sir.” The Cosmic Lotus cautiously entered the center of the wormhole with scarcely any turbulence. It was closely followed by the Pegasus on the assumption that the portal might shut down after the Cosmic Lotus exited if there wasn’t another ship inside it still. Wandering was able to appreciate the journey far more than their first terrifying transit through it. With their ship under full control and no sail threatening to tear them apart, the passage through the wormhole was both exciting and beautiful. It seemed that next to no time passed before they shot out the other end of the portal, with the Federation vessel close behind. The rear video monitors showed the gateway shutting down as soon as the Pegasus was clear. Their navigation system then locked onto their target star – Celestia’s sun. “Engage warp drive, Mister Playbitz. Let’s go home.” With a smile a mile wide on his face, the pegasus replied, “With pleasure, Captain!” He activated the pre-set flight plan and the Cosmic Lotus leapt into hyperspace. Bluequill said, “Do you have the feeling that we’re bringing enormous change to Equus, Captain?” Wandering nodded. “For better or for worse, our world is never going to be the same.”